GOP Lawmakers Back Bill Clinton on Drilling

GOP leaders are turning to former President Bill Clinton’s statement on the absurdity of oil-drilling delays to counter President Barack Obama’s reluctance to drill domestically, according to Politico.

“Even President Clinton has criticized this administration for [the slow pace of] drilling permits,” House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy said on CNN's “State of the Union,” referring to Clinton's comments last week, calling delays in issuing drilling permits “ridiculous.”

Appearing on the same show, Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., concurred with McCarthy, saying U.S. energy production will be down 13 percent this year. Kyl blamed the decline on an Obama-imposed moratorium on new deepwater drilling permits, following the massive Deepwater Horizon spill. The administration recently granted two permits – the first two since the spill.

Both men are against tapping the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. “We can get American energy online if we simply grant the permits,” Kyl said.

GOP leaders are turning to former President Bill Clinton s statement on the absurdity of oil-drilling delays to counter President Barack Obama s reluctance to drill domestically, according to Politico. Even President Clinton has criticized this administration for [the slow...